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WORLD CUP

World Cup notes: Brazil gets in World Cup swing as protests quiet down

Sun Wire Services

Friday, June 13, 2014
5:54:35 EDT PM

A picture shows a general view of the Pantanal Arena in Cuiaba before the start of the Group B football match between Chile and Australia during the 2014 FIFA World Cup on June 13, 2014. (AFP PHOTO/JUAN BARRETO)

World Cup fever gathered steam across Brazil on Friday after the long-awaited opener went ahead without major hitches, although the lingering threat of violent protests and a late scramble in some host cities kept organizers on edge.

Brazil's opening victory over Croatia unleashed celebrations late into the night Thursday, with fireworks and car horns echoing for hours in major cities while fans got into the spirit of the first World Cup on Brazilian soil since 1950.

Shopkeepers in Rio de Janeiro and Belo Horizonte cleaned up storefronts Friday that they had boarded up for opening day, when several protests against the costs and alleged corruption behind the tournament broke into scattered clashes with police.

Brazilians are still unhappy about the $11 billion spent to host the Cup in a country with glaring inequalities that struggles to fund schools, hospitals and other basic services. But many are just as frustrated with protesters now trying to spoil the party.

"They won't stop us having our fun, especially when Brazil win!" said Pedro Ribeiro, 29, a businessman in Belo Horizonte who held a house party until the early hours to celebrate the 3-1 victory over Croatia.

"People have a right to complain. There are lots of problems in Brazil. But they don't have the right to be violent or to spoil the World Cup we've all been waiting so long for," Ribeiro said. "This party is only just beginning."

FANS MOVED FOR SAFETY REASONS

Between 50 and 100 fans have been moved to different seats for the Mexico-Cameroon match in Natal Friday due to safety concerns over some of the temporary seating, a spokesman for the World Cup's local organizing committee said.

The local fire service requested that the places be moved to a different part of the stadium after a last-minute visit on Friday morning.

But the fire service said it had not been able to complete a full and final approval of the area and refused to vouch for the safety of the seating.

"For safety reasons there was a request that 50 to 100 places were re-allocated within the temporary seating," Saint-Clair Milesi, spokesman for the Local Organizing Committee which works with FIFA to organiZe and operate the World Cup, said.

The World Cup in Brazil has been plagued by delays with preparations at a number of the 12 stadiums running right to the wire. In the north-eastern city of Natal around 10,000 temporary seats have been installed in the stadium to accommodate fans for matches.

"The new seats may be done, but we didn't have the access to give our final approval," said state firefighters' spokesman Christiano Couceiro. "Anything that happens today is the total responsibility of FIFA."

CROATIA RIPS JAPANESE REF

Japanese referee Yuichi Nishimura is unfit for the World Cup because he cannot speak a word of English or any other international language, Croatia centre back Vedran Corluka said.

Corluka was one of several furious Croatian players who confronted Nishimura after he awarded a contentious penalty to Brazil in the tournament's Group A opener Thursday.

"We were quite simply shocked with the fact that he communicated with us in Japanese all the time," Corluka told Croatian media on Friday. "It is just hard to fathom that an official who speaks no English or any other international language was allowed to be in charge of the World Cup's opening match."

Nishimura is a very experienced official and was the 2012 Asian referee of the year. He was also the fourth official at the 2010 World Cup final.

Neymar converted the penalty to give Brazil a 2-1 lead midway through the second half and midfielder Oscar stabbed the third in added time moments after Croatia missed a good chance to equalise.

Brazil takeS on Mexico in Fortaleza Tuesday while the Croatians play their next match in the hot and humid Amazon city of Manaus Wednesday.

COLOMBIA OVER LOSS OF FALCAO

Colombia HAS recovered from losing top striker Radamel Falcao to injury with others in their attack-minded team hoping to "hurt" Greece in Saturday's Group C opener, coach Jose Pekerman said.

Though Falcao's absence is a huge blow for the South Americans in their first World Cup since 1998, they still have a wealth of offensive talent with the likes of Teofilo Gutierrez, Jackson Martinez and Carlos Bacca.

"I can't hide it. I would like to have Falcao here. We suffered a lot, we got it out of our system, we handled it like a family," Pekerman told reporters before his team warmed up at the Mineirao stadium in Belo Horizonte. "Now let's not talk about it any more, let's focus on the potential of the other players. We are only concentrating on how we can hurt Greece."

The coach said Falcao, out of the tournament with a ligament injury, would be present for Saturday's game to encourage the team.

Having come second in South American qualifiers, Colombia are in the World Cup finals for the first time since three consecutive appearances in the 1990s with flamboyant players like goalkeeper Rene Higuita and blond-permed midfielder Carlos Valderrama.

WORLD CUP ROCKS FACEBOOK

Brazil's 3-1 win over Croatia in the World Cup opener Thursday generated 58 million posts on Facebook, almost five times more than this year's Academy Awards ceremony in Hollywood, the social media company said on Friday.

The most commented play on Facebook was Neymar's first goal, which levelled the match after Brazil fell behind early with an embarrassing own goal. The second most talked-about play was the controversial penalty that led to Neymar's second goal, putting Brazil ahead for the first time.

With 16 million posts, Brazil was the most active country on Facebook during the game, followed by the United States and England.

"That number represents more than 20 times the capacity of all the stadiums of the World Cup," Facebook said in a statement.

The World Cup is a big business opportunity for companies like Facebook as fans around the world turn to social media to comment on live events.

The most active demographic group during the opening match was men between 18 and 24 years old, Facebook said.

WORK STOPS FOR WORLD CUP

Theme lunches, giant TVs and viewing parties. Silicon Valley may be far from the World Cup in Brazil but tech employees are getting in on the globe's most prestigious soccer event.

Twitter, LinkedIn and Nvidia are among several tech companies airing matches in their offices during the next month and encouraging employees to follow the action.

The World Cup has made inroads in the United States, although employees at many companies must be circumspect about getting their fix. But some tech companies, famous for giving their engineers everything from gourmet food to on-site hairdressers, World Cup fever's penetration is reminiscent of Latin America or Europe, where the tournament captivates the public.

As the tournament progresses, with up to three games per day in the coming weeks, Evernote, as well as Twitter, Facebook Inc and Zynga Inc will have games playing in conference rooms and other locations.

Most of this year's matches are scheduled during office hours in California, making for potential disruptions at companies known for demanding work schedules.

BRAZIL TO TEST FANS FOR HIV

Brazilian health officials handed out condoms to World Cup fans in Sao Paulo on Friday and took advantage of festivities in the city to test people for HIV.

"We can't miss an opportunity like this," said Ivone De Paula, Sao Paulo state's coordinator for sexually transmitted disease prevention. "The fact that it's the Cup lightens the mood a bit. People say 'Hey I'm going to watch the game, I'm having fun, why not get tested too?'"

The program, part of the UNAIDS "Protect the Goal" HIV/AIDS prevention program, provides rapid HIV testing and counseling, as well as free condoms and emergency retroviral drugs. It is also being offered in 11 other cities across Sao Paulo state where visiting World Cup teams are based.

De Paula expected the program to conduct about 300 rapid HIV tests outside Friday's Fan Fest, where a giant screen displayed the Cameroon vs. Mexico match. Many were getting tested for the first time ever, she said.

"I had no idea this was going to be here, I just came across it," said a middle-aged man who asked not to be identified. "I wouldn't know where to get tested otherwise, so this helps quite a lot."

Brazil usually conducts HIV and AIDS prevention campaigns during the Carnival holiday, including widespread advertising and condom distribution. Aggressive HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention efforts in the South American country have been held up as a model for the developing world for more than a decade.

ANTS INFILTRATE URUGUAY CAMP

Hordes of Brazilian ants have infiltrated Uruguay's World Cup training camp and found their way into the players' beds.

Goalkeeper Fernando Muslera posted a photograph on Twitter of hundreds of the offending insects scuttling over his bedsheets but said they were swiftly dealt with by staff at the camp near the city of Belo Horizonte.

"It was funny more than anything else," Muslera told a news conference ahead of his side's opening Group D match against Costa Rica Saturday.

"We found ants in the beds, myself and (reserve goalkeeper Rodrigo) Munoz, who's sharing the room with me.

"But it was fine. They came straight away and changed the sheets and we slept well."

GREEK STRIKER FIT TO PLAY

Greece's top striker Kostas Mitroglou is fit to play against Colombia in their World Cup Group C opener Saturday despite hardly featuring this year due to a knee injury, coach Fernando Santos said.

Mitroglou, who became his country's most expensive ever transfer when he joined Fulham in January in a 15 million euro deal, scored three times in their 4-2 aggregate playoff win over Romania last year to help Greece qualify.

But he has hardly played since joining the English club due to the nagging knee injury.

"Being a player who has an important role in the team due to his characteristics we understand that Kostas should be here," the Portuguese said. "Everything is ok."

"I think he has been improving a lot physically so that is not a problem. He may be lacking rhythm a bit but after each day he is better and Mitroglou will be close to his top performances here."

The Greece coach, whose team take on Ivory Coast and Japan in their other group matches, played down an injury to defender Kostas Manolas in training on Friday. The player was inadvertently struck in the face by a team mate during their last training session at the Mineirao stadium.

SUAREZ OUT FOR URUGUAY

Uruguay's recovering striker Luis Suarez will not start their World Cup Group D opener against Costa Rica, coach Oscar Tabarez said on Friday.

"We're just about to go out and train on the pitch now and you never know what will happen but, barring a major upset, my starting lineup will be as follows," Tabarez told a news conference.

He then listed his starting 11, omitting Suarez and naming Edinson Cavani and Diego Forlan up front.